Safetypin



June 22, 1937. M. CRANDALL SAFETYFIN Filed April 5, 1955 Marion .4. Crand/l Patented June 22, 1937 'umrso STATES PATENT orrlcs 16 Claims.

v This inventionrelates to safety pins, and more particularly to a safety pin in thenormal position of which the sharpened end of the pin is disposed behind a protecting shield.

The common safety pin, of which there is practically only one type on the market today, constitutes an ever present source of danger due to the outwardly projecting pin portion when in an open position, and as is well known, they are not infrequently swallowed when in an open position by young children. When an open safety pin is disposed in the throat or internal organs of a child, it becomes firmly embedded in the surrounding tissues, making a serious operation necessary for its removal.

According to the present invention, the normal open position of the sharpened end of the pin is such that the pin portion is shielded and if the pin is accidentally swallowed by a child, it may pass entirely through the child without danger of becoming caught, regardless of which end" is swallowed first. Another particularly advantageous feature of the present invention resides in the normal closed unstressed position of the sharpened end of the pin. In this position the sharpened end of the pin is also shielded so that if the pin is partially or wholly open while in clothing, the point will be shielded, preventing the wearer of the clothing from being pricked or s us d- Specifically, the invention resides not only in providing a safety pin, in which in normal open 'a shielding recess for the point in normal open position.

A further object of the invention is to provide a safety pin having a guarding head with opposed portions of side plates inwardly bent for providing a restricted pin receiving throat between 50 them.

These and other objects will be apparent from the following specifications, when taken with the accompanying'drawing, in which Fig. l is a side elevation of the invention show- 5 ing the safety pin in a closed position,

(CL M 181) Fig. 2 is a view corresponding to Fig. 1 showing the safety pin in anopen position,

Fig. 3 isa section taken on the line IlI -III of Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a section taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 2, and

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line V-V of Fig. 4.

Referring particularly to Fig. 1 of the drawing. reference character i indicates, a body of the improved safetypin according to this invention having a pin 2 with a sharpened end 3. t The body I andthe pin 2 are connected at one end by a resilient loop 4. A guard l is secured to the free end of the body I. The resilient loop 4 and the pin 2 are all formed from a resilient wire such as piano wire, and the bends 6, I, and 8, comprising portions of the resilient loop 4 are formed by bending the wire, as distinguished from drawing. The bending of the wire does not reduce the resilient characteristics of the loop I, while drawing would so change the structure of the material that the resiliency would be insuflicient for the purposes of the invention.

The guard I is made of thin sheet metal generally of channel form, and at its point of attachment to the body I has as depending guiding tongue I I. The lower portion of the guard 5 comprises a V-shaped trough H, the bottom curvature of which has a radius substantially equal to that of the pin 2. In normal closed position the pin 2 is disposed within the bottom of the channel II, and is maintained therein by a resilient throat l2, shown particularly in Fig. 3 formed by slightly pinching in the ends of the channel H to form inwardly deflected portions ll. In this position the pin is stressed. However, even if the pin be accidentally removed from behind the deflected portions it into unstressed position, it will still be within the walls of the channel II in a position corresponding to the open unstressed position illustrated in Fig. 2 and shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1., On the opposite end of the trough II the guard U bulges outwardly into a protecting head ll. In manufacture the troush II is provided with its configuration by depressing the sides thereof inwardly from a wider trough originally having a width somewhat equal to the widest part of the head It.

The resilient loop 4 connecting the body I and the pin 2 is characterised by the fact that in normal open position the sharpened end 3 of the pin 2 is disposedag'ainst one side or the other of the trough ll substantially midway between the top and bottom thereof. By normal open position in the ,claims is meant any open position wherein the pin 2'is manually unstressed. Reference to Fig. 5 will disclose that the head ll shields the sharpened end of the pin l'in such a manner that the sharpened end 3 is entirely protected sothatif, for instance, a child swallowed the safety pin of this invention while open, the guard portion going first, the pin would pass entirely through the childs body without harm to the child. The same result would occur if the loop 4 end of the pin were swallowed first. Further reference to Fig. 5 also indicates that the trough II is tapered somewhat in the direction of the loop 4 in order that the sharpened end 3 of the pin 2 may rest snugly thereagainst.

In the event that the sharpened end 3 of the pin in open position should rest directly on the bottom of the trough ii, the head I is provided with a. depending bulge l5 to shield the sharpened end of the pin in the same. manner as it is shielded when disposed at either side of the trough H.

A further particularly advantageous feature of this invention resides in the loop 4. As is well known, the; common safety pin which is most widely in use today is provided with a loop which, although shielded, frequently catches in clothing and cannot be removed without breaking the thread or the portion of the clothing in which it is caught. The present loop being of the form of a 'V extending inwardly and in the plane of the body I, the pin 2 provides not only an exceeds inglyresilient construction, but also will not catch in loose threads or other portions of garments as does the usual resilient connection between the body and the pin 01' known safety pins.

Having thus described by invention, what I delire to secure by Letters Patent and claim is:

1. A safety pin comprising a body and a sharpened pin, said body and pin being connected by resilient means for urging said body and pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, and a guard carried by said body defining a hollow interior for receiving the sharpened end of the pin in closed position, said guard having on the exterior thereof means arranged for shielding the sharpened end of the pin in all normal open positions.

2. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, saidbody and pin being connected by resilient means for urging said'body and pin into a-predetermined spacedrelationship, a guard carried by said body for shielding the sharpened end of said pin in closed position and in normal open position, and means defined on the exterior of said guard for receiving the sharpened end of said pin. said pin being characterized by the fact that'in all normal open positions'its sharpened endis resiliently urged into said means defined in normal open position. and an external deprespin, said pin being characterised by the fact that in its normslopen position its sharpened end is disposed in said depression.

; 4. A safety pin, comprising abodyand asharp- 'ened plasma body and said pin being connected by resilient means for-urging said body and pin into-a predeterminedspaced relationship, a sheet metal guard carried by said body for 'shieldingthesharpenedend the sharpened end of said pin in closed position and in normal open position, means defined on the exterior of said guard for receiving the sharpened end of said pin, said pin being characterized by the fact that in all normal open positions the sharpened end is resiliently urged into said means-and means defined in the interior of said guard for'receiving the sharpened end of saidpin in closed position.

, 5. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin. said body and said pin being connected by resilient means for urging said body and pin 6. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, said body, and said pin'being connected by resilient means for urging said body and pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, a sheet metal guard carried by said body for shielding the sharpened end of said pin in closed position and in normal open position, an external depression in said guard for receiving the sharpened" end of saidpin and providing an abutment in front of the sharpened end of said pin, said pin being characterized by the fact that in its normal open position the sharpened end is disposed in said depression, and means defined by said guard for receiving the sharpened end of said pinin closed position. 7 7. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, said body and said pin being connected by resilient means for urging. said'bodv and pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, a guard carried by said body for shielding the sharpened end of said pin-in closed position and in normal open position, an external depression defined by said guard for receiving the sharpened end of said pin and providing an abutment in front of the sharpened end of said pin, said pin-being characterized by the fact that in its normal open 1 position the sharpened end is disposed in said depression. and a restricted throat defined by said guard for resiliently receiving the sharpened end of said pin in closed position] 8. Assfetypimcomprisingabodyondolbl-Ipby resilient means for urging laid bodyond into a predeterminedspoced rclatiomhip, sheetmetalguardcari-iedbysoidbodyforv inlthc sharpened'end oi' sald pin in closed tion and in normalopen position. said pin characterised by the fact that-in itsnormol position the sharpened end is contiguous. said guard. and saidguardbeingchsrnctcrimd a E E E 5 E E g Emits;

bulgedendoverlappingthesharpenodendcl-id pinwhendisposedinnormalopenposition. 1

c w midbod snam-unbung by resilientmeans forurgingsoidbodyond into a spaced m a sheetmetol carriedby said body olllldplnin' position.

will

position and inno'rmal W om bytho.

mal open position the sharpened end is disposed contiguous with said guard, and said guard being characterized by the fact that it has on the exsharpened pin, said body and said pin'being con-- nected by resilient means for urging said body and pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, and a guard carried by said body for shielding the sharpened end of said pin in closed position and in normal open position, said pin being characterized by the fact tltat in its normal open position the sharpened end is disposed contiguous with said guard, and said guard being characterized by the fact that it has on the exterior thereof pin in closed position.

a bulged end overlapping the sharpened end of said pin when disposed in normal open position, and also by the fact that it has a restricted throat for resiliently receiving the sharpened end of said 11. A safety pin. comprising a body and a sharpened pin, said body and said pinbeing connected by resilient means for urging said body and said pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, a sheet metal guard carried by said body for shielding the sharpened end of said pin in closed position and in its normal open position, a restricted throat for receiving the sharpened end of said pin in closed position, an external depression in said guard defined by said guard for receiving the sharpened end of said pin, said pin being characterized by the fact that in its normal open position its sharpened end is disposed in said depression, and a bulged end defined on' the exterior .of said guard adjacent said depression and overlapping the sharpened end of said pin when the same is in normal open position.

12. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, said body and said pin being connected by resilient means for uni! Md body v and pin into a predetermined spaced relationship,

disposed in said means defined by said guard, a restricted throat defined by said guard for resiliently receiving the sharpened end of said pin in closed position, and a shield defined on the exterior of said guard adjacent said means defined by said guard, overlapping the sharpenedend of said pin when the same is in normal open position.

13. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin substantially disposed in a single plane, said body and said pin being connected byresilient means for urging said'body and said pin into a predetermined spaced relationship, said body, pin, and means being characterized by the fact that when said body and said pin are in said spaced relationship, said body, pin, and means are substantially unstressed in a direction parallel to said plane, and a guard carried by said body having a hollow interior in which the sharp- .ened end of said pin is shielded while the same is .in said predetermined spaced relationship to said body.

14. A safety pin, comprising a body portion having a guard at one end and a sharpened pin at the other, said guard having a substantially U-shaped sheet metal pin receiving portion, said pin being resiliently supported upon said body with the sharpened end contiguous with said guard, said pin in positions of minimum stressv within or without said guard having the pointed end thereof shielded by said guard, said. guard being provided with sharpened pin overlapping means for the purpose.

15. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, means resiliently urging said pin into a predetermined spaced relationship with said body, said means and pin being unstressed when said pin is in said predetermined spaced relationship to said body, and a sheet metal guard carried by said body, said guard having a hollow interior in which said pin isshielded when in said predetermined spaced relationship.

16. A safety pin, comprising a body and a sharpened pin, a sheet metal guard having an exterior outstanding abutment carried by said body, and means resiliently urging said pin against the outside surface of'said guard and behind said abutment.

MERTUN L. CRANDALL. 

